Indonesian social media character Ratu Thalisa has been handed a two-year and ten-month jail sentence after making a controversial comment in regards to the look of Jesus Christ in a TikTok video.
A court docket in Medan, positioned in North Sumatra, discovered Thalisa responsible of inciting religious hatred against Christianity and disturbing “public order” and “non secular concord”. The case stemmed from a video the place Thalisa, responding to a remark suggesting she ought to reduce her hair to look extra masculine, held up a picture of Jesus and remarked: “You shouldn’t seem like a girl. It’s best to reduce your hair in order that you’ll seem like his father.”
READ MORE: 5 Irresistible Ghanaian foods that leave visitors wanting to return
It isn’t unusual to get offended at your office, however the way you management that anger issues lots
The Nigerian Boxing Board of Management calls for justice over the suspicious loss of life of boxer Gabriel Oluwasegun Olanrewaju in Ghana, citing negligence by the Ghana Boxing Authority.
US authorities personnel concerned in relationships with Chinese language nationals can be required to both terminate the connection or resign from their positions, based on a brand new directive.
Her feedback sparked outrage and prompted 5 Christian teams to file blasphemy complaints in opposition to her. The court docket not solely sentenced her to almost three years in jail but in addition imposed a superb of roughly $6,200 (USD).
Thalisa, a transgender Muslim lady with an viewers of almost 450,000 followers on TikTok, has since turn out to be the main focus of concern for human rights advocates. Organisations akin to Amnesty Worldwide have criticised the court docket’s ruling as a “disturbing blow to freedom of expression.”
Whereas Indonesia should certainly deal with incitement to non secular hatred that might result in discrimination or violence, Ratu Thalisa’s feedback don’t meet that threshold, said Usman Hamid, Govt Director of Amnesty Worldwide Indonesia.
The influencer was convicted beneath Indonesia’s contentious Digital Info and Transactions (EIT) Regulation—laws that was enacted in 2008 and later revised in 2016. Although meant to fight on-line defamation, the regulation has incessantly been used to stifle dissent and restrict free speech.
READ MORE: Who claims Sarkodie’s career is dead? These 10 songs prove them wrong
Human rights defenders have pointed to a rising pattern of comparable circumstances. In 2023, a Muslim lady obtained a two-year sentence for uttering a Muslim phrase earlier than consuming pork. A yr later, one other TikTok person was detained for blasphemy after posting a quiz that requested kids which animals can learn the Quran.
In Thalisa’s case, prosecutors initially demanded a four-year sentence and have since filed an attraction in opposition to the court docket’s determination, seemingly decided to impose a harsher punishment.
